Welcome to the Mr. Local History Project
“A 501c3 Non-Profit Dedicated to Preserving and Promoting Jersey History with a Social Twist”
Countdown to America’s 250th Birthday
The Mr. Local History Project is about bringing New Jersey’s past into the present through the stories of real places, real people, and real communities. Focused especially on New Jersey history, the project celebrates local history in a way that feels personal, engaging, and relevant, not something locked away in textbooks, but history that lives where we live. As we head into 2026, the 250th anniversary of the United States, Mr. Local History is turning history into a shared experience. With a social twist, this is about connecting online and in the community, sharing memories, spotlighting hometown stories, and honoring New Jersey’s outsized role in America’s founding. It is history you can explore, share, and be part of together.
Today in America’s History (We Update Every Day)
- 1778: Pluckemin, New Jersey. Continental Army artillery cantonment during the Revolutionary War, associated with Henry Knox and American artillery training and logistics.
- 1779: Morristown winter encampment in New Jersey. Washingtons army endured a severe winter, associated with Nathanael Greene, Henry Knox, the Marquis de Lafayette, and Baron von Steuben.
- 1864: U.S. President Abraham Lincoln grants Yosemite Valley to California for "public use, resort and recreation".
- 1882: Charles J. Guiteau is hanged in Washington, D.C. for the assassination of U.S. President James Garfield.
- 1892: The Homestead Strike begins near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
- 1900: A savage fire wrecked three steamships docked at a pier in Hoboken, New Jersey. Over 200 crew members and passengers are killed, and hundreds injured.
- 1906: The United States Congress passes the Meat Inspection Act and Pure Food and Drug Act.
- 1921: U.S. President Warren G. Harding appoints former President William Howard Taft as Chief Justice of the United States.
- 1922: In Washington D.C., U.S. Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes and Dominican Ambassador Francisco J. Peynado sign the Hughes–Peynado agreement, which ends the United States occupation of the Dominican Republic.
- 1959: A United States Air Force F-100 Super Sabre from Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, crashes into a nearby elementary school, killing 11 students plus six residents from the local neighborhood.
What are You Doing Today to Celebrate America’s 250th
Our Readers’ Top 10 MLH Posts this Week
Latest Posts
History Debunked: Separating Myth from Fact
Views: 75 In honor of America’s 250th anniversary, we’ve been on the road, attending many great speeches and presentations on our country’s history. But one speaker gave an interesting twist, asking the audience about some commonly stated facts that have…
YES… a Revolutionary Pub Crawl for America 250 is Coming to Bernardsville, New Jersey
Views: 24 YES… a Revolutionary Pub Crawl for America 250 is coming to Bernardsville, New Jersey, Saturday, October 10, 2026. Is there a better way to honor America’s 250th anniversary than to join General Washington, Ben Franklin & other time…
What America at 250 Means to Me Essay Series Open to All
Views: 226 As Americans experience our 250th anniversary, historians are asking how this moment should be understood and remembered. The Mr. Local History Project is preparing an in-depth story that brings together perspectives from respected voices across our region. This…
Show us Your Red, White, and Blue Contest – Celebrating America 250
Views: 360 America’s 250th birthday is a once-in-a-generation celebration, and there’s no better time to proudly display what America means to you. Whether it’s a porch draped in flags, a family dressed in red, white, and blue, a neighborhood gathering,…
Middlebrook’s 1778-1779 Encampment – 10,000 Troops and Bridgewater’s Legacy
Views: 675 Military protocol in the eighteenth century generally called for armies to suspend major campaigning during the winter months. Harsh weather, poor roads, limited food supplies, and the difficulty of moving men, horses, artillery, and wagons made large-scale operations…
Igniting New Jersey’s Revolutionary Signal Beacons for America 250 Effort
Views: 582 Long before telegraphs, radios, or cell phones, New Jersey’s mountaintops carried messages by fire. During the Revolutionary War, General William Livingston and Brigadier General William Alexander—better known as Lord Stirling—relied on a chain of signal beacons stretching across…
Meet HistOracle AI: New Jersey Team Brings History’s Voices Back to Life
Views: 416 For centuries, historians have relied on books, letters, artifacts, and exhibits to tell the stories of the past. But what if visitors could do something more? What if they could actually sit down and have a conversation with…
Communicating Life Stories – Digital Storytelling Oral History
Views: 7,209 Communicating Life Stories and Digital Storytelling For generations, family stories and personal memories were preserved through handwritten letters, photo albums, and conversations around the kitchen table. Today, those same stories can be recorded with a smartphone, shared across…
Mr. Local History’s America’s 250th Commemorative Magazine
Views: 2,765 This Special Issue of Mr. Local History Magazine celebrates America’s SEMIQUINCENTENNIAL, the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence, by bringing New Jersey’s Revolutionary past to life. From historic battlefields and museum exhibits to community events…
America’s Grandest Estate in Basking Ridge Archaeological Dig Continues
Views: 551 UPDATE:Wednesday, June 18, 2026, Session 13 – 02:00 PM – 03:15 PM, hear the panel explore, through the lens of archaeology, the past, present, and future of “The Buildings,” the former estate of Revolutionary War General William Alexander, also known…
The Great Swamp: Ice Age, Melting, Airports, Swampers, Raptors, Fireworks & Horror Tales
Views: 796 At first glance, the Great Swamp seems peaceful, a quiet stretch of reeds, willows, and winding creeks lying between Basking Ridge, Harding, and Chatham. Yet beneath its still surface lies a story that spans thousands of years, from…
MLH Loves To See The Public Engaged….. The Latest Comments
Lord Stirling is my 6th great-grandfather. I’d like to keep on top of the research you do about him!
I worked for AT&T IMS from ’88 to ’92 on the first floor of building 7. Our organization was responsible…
As history buffs (particularly Revolutionary War), we were excited to visit Eagles’s Nest at Washington Valley Park today. From the…
My Grandfather, Boyd Happe, was a proud member. Raised pheasants on Prospect behind 148 Maple. Those houses had trouble with…
When I moved to Martinsville section of Bridgewater 44 yrs. ago, the western side of Shley Mtn. was a huge…
Grew up at on So. 10th EWR. Went to St. Ann’s grammar school on 16th and 7th. Graduated 1956. Mom…
Please advise if Sky Farm is having an open house because the date within this document says June 11th Saturday…
I was a resident of Peapack , living on the road known as Matheny road during the years that Jacqueline…
Jimmy was an integral part of the services throughout the town and was always actively involved. He was always very…
Our Summer 2026 Magazine is HERE!
Full of great local Jersey History to keep you on the edge of your history seat.
Special Edition – America’s 250th The SEMI-QUIN-CENTENNIAL is HERE!
See our special digital magazine. Full of great local Jersey History.
We held my youngest son’s baptism reception there in 1988. Very happy atmosphere and memories. When did it close?